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My "New" Old Stereo Preamp

I would like to publically thank the major political parties for the campaign they ran during the past Presidential Election. It was so ridiculously negative and whiney I spent much less time watching the news and on social media.

What have I been doing with all that reclaimed time, you ask? Playing music, of course. More specifically, I have been playing around with rebuilding a two-channel system for vinyl and CDs.

I have bought several preamps and integrated amps looking for what sounds good to my aging ears. Today, I have made a full-circle trip back to college days with my latest purchase.

Pictured here is a Yamaha C-60 Control Amp aka preamp. I bought one of these my Sophmore year in college along with a Yamaha M-60 power amp. I really played the hell out of that system during and after college. I foolishly sold the pair in the early 2000's when I built my first "serious" home theater system. It didn't take me long to discover that nothing I owned compared to the two-channel performance of that Yamaha pair.

There are a few things that make this preamp unique. For starters, it has two phono inputs, 'cause who doesn't have two turntables? In addition, if you flip down the front face panel, there are not only tone controls but also turnover frequency knobs to truly fine-tune the bass and treble. There's also a phono selector that has more options than I ever knew existed in cartridges.

If that were not enough, the C-60 and the upper-end C-80 and C-85 also have a variable loudness control for even more fine tone control, especially at low listening volumes.

I am really enjoying having it in my system and have missed the sound of a quality stereo preamp.

Next piece will be a "new" old stereo amp. Decisions, decisions, decisions.

I would like to publically thank the major political parties for the campaign they ran during the past Presidential Election. It was so ridiculously negative and whiney I spent much less time watching the news and on social media.

Tracy, I imagine you listen to even more music since the inauguration. I know I do. Having said that, I appreciate the plug for older equipment. I traveled back to the early 70's and use two stereo receivers from that decade, a Pioneer SX-828 and a Marantz model 19. Both pieces put a smile on my face and the hunt for them was just as much fun as listening through them. Good luck with your next hunt.

Tracy, I imagine you listen to even more music since the inauguration. I know I do. Having said that, I appreciate the plug for older equipment. I traveled back to the early 70's and use two stereo receivers from that decade, a Pioneer SX-828 and a Marantz model 19. Both pieces put a smile on my face and the hunt for them was just as much fun as listening through them. Good luck with your next hunt.

I love those 1970's receivers. I have the Realistic STA 2000 that my parents bought when we were growing up. This is, along with the election, was what restarted my two-channel obsession. I had it up and running but now it has an issue with the right channel output. I'm going to have to do some digging to see what's going on. The closest repair shop is about 75 miles from me and this beast is big and weighs a ton. I really don't want to ship it so I am going to take my time and replace some of the components that are most likely to fail. I don't have the proper test equipment, so it's a bit of a guessing game. However, 40+ year-old capacitors are usually a safe bet as most of them are really rated to last 10-15 years. It could also be the output transistors, so I may go ahead and track them down, too.

The STA 2000 was a pretty receiver alright and powerful. I'm no electrician but sometimes cleaning the potentiometer and balance controls might help, especially if you're getting channel hash. I'm sure you've already checked connections. The really great thing about these older receivers was the quality parts that were used. That's why they've lasted. My Marantz is original. The last time I had it in the shop for a tune up was around 2006. Your post here has reminded me to switch it out with my Pioneer, so thanks for that. I'm fortunate that I have a Stereo Workshop in Clifton Park, NY that does quality work at affordable prices. The owner is an enthusiast too but it's a 50 mile ride. Well worth it though because he has a show room of older equipment.

It started off great, everything sounded normal and I put a lot of hours on it. Then, every once in a while, it would emit a brief screeching/static sound from the right channel. There was no predictability to it and it didn't happen often. Now the output of the right channel is a good bit lower than the left. If you put it into mono, both channels are equal volume, but I'm afraid to play it until I get it checked or do some digging.

The Marantz Model 16 you mentioned, is it a receiver? I thought it was a stereo power amp.

I wish mine looked this good. Mine is in fair condition and is missing the 2 oscilloscope knobs, but it performs fine. I don't have the wooden case either. I bought it at at tag sale in Connecticut. The person who gave this up didn't know what they had.

I wish mine looked this good. Mine is in fair condition and is missing the 2 oscilloscope knobs, but it performs fine. I don't have the wooden case either. I bought it at at tag sale in Connecticut. The person who gave this up didn't know what they had.